


Tough luck, my friend

by WinterMunchkin05



Series: Where words fail, music speaks [4]
Category: Captain America (Movies), Iron Man (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Soulmates, Crack Treated Seriously, Fluff and Crack, Howard is a low-key protective dad, I think?, James "Rhodey" Rhodes is a Good Bro, M/M, Meet-Cute, Overprotectiveness dialed to 3000, Soulmate-Identifying Marks, Yes we need good!Dad Howie for a change, that he practically invented and patented cockblocking, tony is baby, way too good
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-11
Updated: 2020-08-11
Packaged: 2021-03-06 07:07:23
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,261
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25839313
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/WinterMunchkin05/pseuds/WinterMunchkin05
Summary: 17-year old Tony tried the “Hickey Prank” on his roommate slash big brother Rhodey.Of course, Tony being Tony…erm, we kinda have an idea how well this all went.
Relationships: James "Bucky" Barnes/Tony Stark, Minor James Rhodey Rhodes/Carol Danvers
Series: Where words fail, music speaks [4]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1640227
Comments: 22
Kudos: 246





	Tough luck, my friend

**Author's Note:**

> I know this has been done a million times over but I can't stop thinking about it when one of my friends mentioned how overprotective her dad and her big brothers were that they treat every boy who would be near her like the enemy of humankind (her words not mine. LOL). 
> 
> Inspired by this [song](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PIh2xe4jnpk)
> 
> Also, I feel like we need some fluff in this series. I still have three WIPs for the angst. xD
> 
> No beta, mistakes are mine.
> 
> Enjoy!

Tony loved his stay in Cambridge, much more than his stay in Andover. To some, being a student in the number one university in the world probably had to do with it. To Tony, it was more of the fact that his Dad was so pleased about him getting into MIT at such a young age.

Of course, that led to his father giving him more breathing room and not monitoring his studies too much, like he did back when Tony was at Phillips Academy. MIT was the goal back then and Howard knew that Tony wanted to get in so badly, thus he was confident that the younger Stark wouldn’t do anything that would make him fail or be expelled. Also, it was the fact that he had finally found one of the two most important people he wanted to meet: his bestfriend and his soulmate.

Tony met the former when he got to his dorm room. Unlike how it had been at Phillips, he was going to be sharing the room with someone. He was excited because he really didn’t have anyone to talk to back then, the solo dorm room contributed to the other students’ assumption that Tony was an uppity twat that thought he was too good for socializing with them.

He met James Rupert Rhodes when he first arrived at the dorm, standing in front of his assigned room. He was nearly fifteen then, his birthday being two weeks away.

Tony was so damn nervous about having a roommate for the first time that he was bursting with anxiety.

_What if they don’t like him? What if they’re a jerk? What if they’re the kind to sneak people in their dorm room all the time so they could fuck like rabbits? What if, what if—_

His fretting ended when a voice spoke beside him. “Hey, is there something you need?”

Tony jumped like a cat and ended up hitting his head on the door in front of him, which inevitably made him drop his bag on to the floor. More specifically, on the stranger’s foot.

“Ow! Daamn, son!” the other guy swore, “What the hell?”

“ _Fuck_.” Tony winced, scrambling to pick up his bag. Shit, it was probably his tool kit that hit the guy’s foot. “I’m sorry, man.”

The guy, still grimacing, stood up to his full height and Tony was still crouched on the floor. He couldn’t help notice that the guy may only be an inch or two taller but he had more muscle mass than Tony’s skinny self.

Oh, God.

He was definitely going to get his ass beat up.

Dread curled in his stomach, his mind frantically calculating his chances of survival should the other kid take a swing.

_Jesus, those hands look like they enjoy punching the shit out of someone—_

“—kid. You okay?” the guy said with a frown. “You’re looking a bit pale. Did you hit your head?”

Tony released all the air he was unconsciously holding in when he noticed that the guy was _actually_ concerned about him. “Uhm…I-I, yeah, I’m good.”

“Here, lemme help you.” The guy offered Tony a hand, which he hesitantly took, and helped him up. “Sorry, I scared you.”

“It’s okay. You didn’t mean to. I’m the one hanging out in the hallway like a moron.” He replied with a self-deprecating grin. “I’m Tony, by the way. Tony Stark.”

If the guy knew anything about him being the son of the famous weapons manufacturer Howard Stark, he didn’t mention it. If anything, he didn’t even bat an eyelash and just introduced himself with a smile.

“James Rupert Rhodes. Nice to meet you, call me Jim.” He said and offered his hand again for a shake that Tony now accepted eagerly. He made a friend, he thought giddily. He didn’t even care about how sad that truly sounded. “That said, why’re you hanging out here?”

“Oh, uhh…this is the room I got. I was just about to knock on the door and…meet my roommate.” He recited, gesturing to the door.

Jim looked at him then the door, before smiling widely, “Ha! Looks like we’ll get along well then. Hi, roomie.”

“This is your room?”

“Yeah.” Jim chuckled, opening the door for him, “Just went out for some snacks, didn’t know my roommate’s going to arrive earlier than I thought. C’mon, let’s get you settled.”

Tony smiled back as they took his things inside. “Well then, this looks like the start of a beautiful friendship.” He said with mock seriousness.

Jim’s laugh was heard all the way down the hall.

* * *

Months passed and Tony had started adjusting to being a college student fairly easily, though most of the credit belonged to his friend. Rhodey—the nickname he had christened the older boy with, because Tony thought it sounded way better than Jim and they match, Tony & Rhodey™—was hands down the coolest bastard to ever walk the Earth. Yep, even _cooler_ than Chuck Norris. There, he said it and he’s not sorry.

Honeybear had immediately stepped into the role of older brother which Tony was secretly grateful for because he didn’t have a sibling and always wondered what it was like to have one. His parents didn’t try for another kid because his mom had been on bed rest for most of her pregnancy with Tony. The whole thing took a toll on Maria and she had mentioned on a handful of occasions that Tony was already enough for her.

If there ever was a list of qualities to be had by an older brother, it would definitely have Rhodey’s face next to it. He also thought that their first meeting left an impact on his friend—well, speaking figuratively this time—because Rhodey took being an older brother to him seriously.

And when he said seriously, he meant… ** _seriously_**.

Tony was basically the youngest person in campus. Hell, all of his classmates were older than he was.

Tony knew how he looked like, he wasn’t blind. The dictionary probably had a photo of him next to the definition of twink. Even his own mother wouldn’t categorize him as handsome, always crooning that he was such a pretty child, how lovely his doe eyes were, much to his father’s chagrin.

Ergo, someone making passes at him wasn’t surprising at all. Especially guys.

Rhodey, however, would have none of it. He would snap and growl at anyone who tried to flirt with Tony. Good Lord, two years ago, he threatened to have someone—a somewhat stereotypical frat boy, obviously a visitor—arrested for calling Tony ‘babe’ and asking him to attend a rager at their frat house as his date.

Rhodey immediately shot up from his seat and it took all of Tony’s strength to hold him back from lunging at the guy.

“He’s _fifteen._ A child. You look like you’re old enough to have a goddamn kid his age. What’s the matter with you?! Get away from him him. I will report your ass to CPS and the cops, creep!”

The commotion drew attention from other students in the pocket garden, enough to dissuade the guy and leave in haste. With Tony being popular around campus for being Howard Stark’s son and his genius, word quickly spread around how people had better keep their hands to themselves or else his friend James Rhodes from ROTC would set you straight. That incident also sparked rumours about them being soulmates that they didn’t bother to deny. Especially since Rhodey thought it was acting as a very effective “bug repellant.”

Which led to…Tony applying makeup he had borrowed from one of Rhodey’s classmates on his neck to create a hickey. Jane Foster, bless her, was more than happy to help ‘little Tony’ out because she felt Rhodey needed to loosen up a little.

Okay, that didn’t make sense.

Hear him out.

He was just bored because Rhodey was at one of his ROTC classes. Tony’s own class finished earlier and he had free period afterwards. It was one of those times where their schedules aligned so they agreed to meet up later in the garden for some lunch and relax a bit. The other day, he was in their dorm room killing time, surfing the internet, debating whether he should hack the Pentagon servers—again—for kicks when he stumbled on one of those trending prank videos on Youtube.

While he didn’t have a girlfriend, a boyfriend or most definitely a _soulmate_ (yet) to pull this prank on, what he did have was an over protective brother. That train of thought led to him wanting to recreate the prank on Rhodey. Honeybear loving a well thought out prank and ‘this would be fun’ was enough justification for Tony. No harm, no foul.

He was just putting a nice spritz of setting spray on his ‘hickey’ when he received the text from Rhodey that he was done with class and on the way back to the dorm. Tony replied that he would meet him outside the building before grabbing his hoodie and the food he bought earlier. He didn’t bother with a camera, he wasn’t going to post the prank online after all.

Pulling his hoodie on, his eyes were drawn to his soulmark, a drab smear of black and gray on the inside of his right forearm.

A star with lines of circuitry within.

Tony was an atheist and he didn’t believe in signs. However, he was in a world wherein people were born with marks that somehow said there was an entity out there that liked to play matchmaker. 

The soulmate phenomenon was just another mystery that no one, even the greatest minds known to man, could ever explain—yet. Tony knew it wouldn’t be him, it was a nice thought but his heart was far more interested in metals and AIs than debunking a seemingly cosmic voodoo. But, he was not ready to give up on Science, someone would be able to explain all this shit someday. He also grew up on Jarvis’ stories about how he would know if he met his soulmate, his mark would literally show its true colors when their skin touched. He would feel as though his world was tilted on its axis and everything just seemed like they’re where they should be. Everything was all right in the world as the bond comes to life. Fine, maybe the last two statements were a bit exaggerated but the thing about the marks getting color was true though.

He wasn’t going to lie if anyone asked about him entertaining the thought of Rhodey being his soulmate.

He had.

Who wouldn’t want Rhodey to be his soulmate?

His Honeybear was gorgeous, brave, caring and wise. Anyone would be lucky to have him. Tony wasn’t ashamed of admitting that he felt disappointed when he saw Rhodey’s soulmark. A beautiful gold beveled eight-pointed star with horizontal gold lines that made it look like it had wings was emblazoned on Rhodey’s back, a touch below his nape.

Rhodey laughed when Tony had pointed it out when he was changing for bed. “Yeah, I found my soulmate already. Her name’s Carol Danvers. She’s a visiting student. We haven’t told anyone yet and she’s in Houston right now to visit some of her family.”

“When did you two meet?”

“A little over a month ago.” Rhodey answered, almost mumbling.

“A little over—wait, why am I just hearing this now?” Tony pouted, turning in his chair to face the older boy.

“We’re not gonna jump into dating just because we’re soulmates, Tones. Yes, it felt like we’ve known each other our whole lives, but that’s really just the bond talking. You get me?” Rhodey’s voice took on a wistful tone as he added, “We want to get to know each other better first and see how it goes…before we tell everybody.”

Tony bit his lip, feeling awful when he realized that Rhodey was scared. His soulbond was new and shiny but he was afraid something would go wrong. He then remembered what his brother told him about his younger sister, Jeanette.

Jeanette’s experience with her own soulmate was horrendous. Her soulmate had been amazing in the beginning too, according to Rhodey. Kind, polite, caring and all that jazz. It wasn’t until months later that the asshole showed his true colors. He became controlling and abusive towards Jeanette. It was a shock to Rhodey’s family when then 16 year old-Jeanette confessed to being pregnant. When Jeanette informed the asshole about her pregnancy, he disappeared without a trace, cutting off his bond with her. Thus, leaving Rhodey and his mom, Roberta to care for Jeanette. Six months later, Lila Rhodes was born. Jeanette wasn’t the same cheerful girl after that. Lila, however, along with Rhodey and Roberta kept her from spiraling into depression from her broken soulbond.

Tony realized that it must have been the actual reason that Rhodey was so protective of him too. It wasn’t just because Tony was such a magnet for creeps and that he was young. Rhodey wanted to make sure that someone that the universe had supposedly designed to be the perfect one for him would not hurt Tony.

The epiphany was both humbling and touching.

“What did your mark look like before you guys met?” he asked in an effort to distract Rhodey from the dispiriting memories. The older boy recognized the question for what it was and Tony received a warm smile in return.

“Thank God, it’s on my back. I can cover it. I mean, it was freaking _silver_ back then, Tones. It’s like I outlined the damn thing with glue and sprinkled glitters on it.” He shuddered, putting on his shirt. “You know what Jeanette used to tell me when we were kids? Jim, your soulmate is one of Santa’s elves. I just know it.”

“But, it’s gold now. It still looks like you put glitter on it.”

“I know, smartass. I told Carol the same thing and she just told me that I’m being stupid.” Rhodey replied, rolling his eyes. 

“Speaking of Carol, did she tell you where her mark is?” Tony probed and regretting it a second later. It was considered in poor taste to ask about where someone’s mark was located on their body. It was synonymous to asking them to flash someone or something more salacious. His eyes almost bugged out of his head when Rhodey coughed awkwardly and scratched his neck.

“Holy shit.” He murmured, feeling a bit of flush running up his cheeks.

“What?”

“Really? Like, really… _really_?”

“What do you mean?”

Rhodey frowned in confusion until it dawned on him what Tony really meant. “No! You little shit!” he squawked, almost falling off his bed as he threw one of his pillows at Tony.

Tony barely caught the pillow, as he giggled, “You looked really awkward! So I thought it had to be…well, er…I think I’m gonna shut up now.”

“You better, kid. You watch too much porn. Yes, I know you do. Your crafty, skinny ass really messed with the campus network to watch videos of people doing the nasty. I should report your ass to the Dean.”

“Hey!” Tony snapped indignantly, “That was one time! Just once!”

“I don’t care. It still happened.” Rhodey returned smugly, chuckling as Tony harrumphed. A beat passed and he said, “It’s on her chest. Her sternum, if you must know.”

“She showed you when you got bonded?” Tony grinned, wagging his eyebrows.

“No! She just told me. Jesus, kid. We literally just met and I’m gonna ask her to open her blouse so I can see her mark? Hell no. My Mama raised me better than that.”

He snickered and teased the older boy some more to cover up his withering little crush on Rhodeybear.

That little even had been a month ago.

Oh, Tony knew already that his interests don’t just lie with the opposite sex when he realized he had a crush on that Lieutenant that used to be the liaison of the military to Stark Industries back when he was twelve. Damn, that man could fill a uniform. Not only that, the man was kind to Tony. He always greeted Tony with a smile whenever he was at the mansion for some business with Howard. Gave Tony candy bars to cheer him up when his father was being dismissive of him. Perhaps, the soldier saw his own younger brother in Tony, he did mention it once when Dad reluctantly introduced him to the man because an oblivious Tony barged into the study room to ask for his permission to let Tony join a school trip.

He fucking cried himself to sleep when he saw in the news that the soldier was killed in action during a mission. How he wailed and screamed into his pillow that night. His parents, even Jarvis and Ana, didn’t know what to do with him because he wouldn’t answer their questions. They never did get to pry the answer out of him because he was afraid of what their reaction would be, particularly Howard’s. Luckily, for him, people now recognize same sex soul bonds and not reject it like back in the day. Then again, it’s not like soulmates automatically marry each other. There were platonic soulmates too.

After one last look in the mirror to make sure the makeup didn’t smear, he went out and locked their room, Tony to meet Rhodey outside their dorm. Tony waited until they were in the garden before unleashing his prank. It was fortunate that there weren’t many people in there with them. A few students and some dude who was a weird mix of a boxer and a hipster with his brick house-like build barely hidden by a gray blazer, stupid manbun, goddamn dark _skinny_ jeans that screamed for mercy as they stretched over his thick, and Tony meant _thick_ thighs. The guy sat a few benches away from their spot, his back to them and furiously typing away on a laptop, so Tony had no idea what he looked like.

Probably as dumb as his manbun.

Snorting at the thought, he decided it was time to start his prank. He turned to look at Rhodey who was staring intently at him. “Hmm? What’s up, Sourpatch?”

The older boy didn’t say anything and Tony realized that he was too busy making fun of Weird Hipster Dude that he forgot to act like he was covering a hickey. Ehh, Rhodey was supposed to find it anyway, so he was just going to wing it now that Honeybear was looking at it.

“What is that on your neck?”

“Huh?” Tony feigned, patting his neck and shoulders, “What? A bug? Where? I don’t feel anything.”

“Oh, it’s a _bug_ alright. Why do you have a hickey, Tones?”

“A _what_? Honeybear, how am I going to have a hickey when you’re always with me?” He’d better get an Oscar for this, he sounded so convincing if he may say so himself.

“That’s what I wanted to know, Tony. How the hell did _that_ happen?” Rhodey gritted, his eyes blazing that Tony was starting to second guess this whole thing.

“Relax, buddy. It’s probably just grease from the lab or something. Don’t worry about it, okay? C’mon, let’s just eat.” He ducked his head and started busying himself with their food—a couple of sandwiches, a huge bag of chips and some flavored yoghurt.

“Tony…let me see your neck.”

That low tone and the ‘or else’ left out of that sentence told him Rhodey was not fucking around. He slowly angled his head to let his older brother see his ‘hickey’. Rhodey rubbed his hand over the mark and swore up a storm when it didn’t come off.

“Goddammit, Tony!” Rhodey groaned, rubbing a hand over his face. “Who is it?!”

Tony barely managed to hide a cringe. Okay, Rhodey was pissed as hell. “Rhodey—“

“Tell me! You better start talking right now, Tony.”

“I-it’s no one, Rhodey. This isn’t—”

“That’s not no one, Tony. We don’t have a goddamn vacuum cleaner in our room and you don’t wear makeup. For the love of God, _talk_.”

Tony wilted at Rhodey’s sharp tone, he was thinking of calling it off because his brother looked like he would murder someone on the spot but his dumb mouth didn’t get the memo. It opened and volunteered to dig his grave for him by spewing the lines he had rehearsed earlier for this prank gone wrong.

“I-it’s James...” he stuttered in shock, “m-my soulmate…”

He slapped a hand over his mouth when he realized what he said. “No, I mean—“

“ _James_?” Rhodey repeated dully, “And he’s your _what_ now? Your _soulmate_? James what, Tony. C’mon, give me his full name.”

_Fuck_.

Tony has done it now.

He recoiled at the thunderous expression on the older boy’s face. “Wait, Rhodey…I didn’t mean—“

“You didn’t mean for this to happen?”

“Well, yes. Ugh, I mean…this isn’t what it looks like, Rhodey—“

Rhodey held up a palm, looking pained, “Tony. I love you, bro. You know that. You’re trying to tell me you didn’t sleep with this person…” he looked as though he was in immense pain saying that, “Okay. _But_ I’m seeing a fucking hickey on yo’ neck and that means even if it’s not all the way, something _did_ happen.”

“Honeybear, nothing happened. It’s not real. There’s no James.” Tony argued. This was a bad idea, there he’d admitted it. He wasn’t going to send Rhodey on a manhunt for some James. He could tell Rhodey wouldn’t let this go until he was presented with some poor bastard’s name.

“Riiight…and that’s a grease stain on your neck. Except it isn’t. This James, he wouldn’t happen to be older than you or me…is he? Because I swear on my Mama, if this fucker turned out to be an adult I’m gonna commit a felony, Tones.”

“Rhodey! Listen to me, it’s not real! It’s fake! It’s makeup.” He whined, rubbing the mark with his own hand. Judging by the look on Rhodey’s face, it didn’t change a thing. Damn, that no smear label on Jane’s makeup was no joke. That setting spray too. Shit.

“Tony, you told me it was grease earlier. Now you’re saying it’s makeup? Stop trying to play me.”

“Rhodey, I was just pranking you! It’s makeup!” They were probably getting a lot of attention from the scant few that were in the garden as well but Tony couldn’t give a rat’s ass about them now.

“A prank?” Rhodey asked incredulously, “You’re telling me…this is a joke.”

“Yes!” Tony almost croaked. Finally, they were getting away from this hickey nonsense.

“Tones, stop trying to distract me. C’mon, give this bastard’s whole name so I can whoop his ass to Hell where he belongs for creeping on a minor.”

“Ugh, Rhoooodeeeyyy…” He was really whining now. “I’m not lying!”

At his answer, Rhodey only looked up and bemoaned, bringing his hands together like he was praying for strength, “Oh my God, please give me strength. Please, _please_ do not let me smack the shit out of this unruly child.”

“Wait, what?” Tony couldn’t help but snicker a bit at that, “Honeybear, I already told you. There’s no soulmate, there’s no James.”

The older boy took a deep breath, letting it out. His hands still pressed together then pinned Tony with a look.

Oh no.

“One last chance, Tony.”

“I already told the truth! Why don’t you believe me?!”

“Because you’re my younger brother. I need to protect you, okay? You’re seventeen. A child!”

“You’re only two years older than me, Rhodey.”

“There. You said it. I’m older while you’re still a minor! A baby!”

“C’mon, Rhodes. You’re being ridiculous.” He loved Rhodey with everything in him but this was too dumb. He wasn’t itching to lose _it_ that he’d just jump into bed with someone that quick.

Tony knew Rhodey wasn’t having it because Rhodey started clapping his hands at him.

“Soulmate. Or. No…I. Don’t. Want. Them. Fuckers. Be. Tryna. Get. Their. Hands. On. A. Kid.”

“Rhodey, please just believe me! There’s no soulmate.” He was about to pull up his sleeve to show Rhodey his mark was still the same black and gray his friend had seen before when a tall, wide frame with a laptop bag slung over one shoulder stepped in between them, startling them both.

“What the hell are you doin’?” the newcomer asked gruffly, pushing Rhodey away from Tony, “You’re scaring him.” 

Tony was surprised when he realized it was Weird Hipster Dude. Apparently, he was, as it would seem, protecting Tony from Rhodey. 

Rhodey quickly regained his balance before he fell on the ground. He crossed his arms and glared at the interloper, “I should be the one asking you that, man. That’s my little brother. This is a family matter and we’re trying to settle it. So, kindly get your anemic Dracula looking ass outta the way.”

“Rhodey, no—“

“Who the fuck you callin’ Dracula, punk?” Hipster Dude scowled back, shoulders tensed at the insult and Tony quickly moved around him to reach Rhodey before the guy started swinging.

“Wait, hold up. This is a misunderstanding.” He stood between them and turned to face the guy, only to feel his mouth go dry.

Well, he’d be damned.

Ugh, he was taking whatever he said earlier about the guy back. He didn’t look stupid at all. The man seemed to be about mid-twenties. He had pale skin, brown hair, high cheekbones, blue gray eyes and rosy wide full mouth. Oh, and good god, that jaw could cut glass. There was a tasteful amount of stubble on his jaw that made Tony want to run his hands over it and feel them prickle his hands. 

Goddamn, Hipster Dude was gorgeous as fuck.

“—do you mean?”

He blinked and thankfully caught on to what Gorgeous Hipster Dude was asking.

“He’s my best friend. Like my older brother. We’re roommates. I was just trying that trending Hickey prank on him.” Tony prattled nervously, looking back and forth the two other guys. He pulled down his hoodie’s collar and angled his neck to show them his fake bruise. “See?” then he said to Rhodey, “I just borrowed the makeup from Jane.”

Rhodey parroted, “Jane?”

Tony nodded.

“So it really was just a joke?”

“Sorry, Rhodey.”

“What the hell, Tones…” Rhodey grumbled, pinching the bridge of his nose.

“Sorry.”

A huff escaped from Hipster Dude making them look at him, he was frowning down at Tony, eyes dripping with disapproval, “Damn. You coulda just told him earlier, kid. You punks were making a scene outta nothin’.”

Tony shrunk back at the tone, embarrassed, “I was trying to—“

“He was trying to tell me but _someone_ interrupted our conversation.” Rhodey cut him off, leveling the man with an unimpressed glare. He never did like it when someone talked down to Tony or others.

“That’s cause it looked like you were gonna start punching him.” The man snapped, looking as though he wanted to deck Rhodey himself.

“Well, I wasn’t and I never will. Air’s cleared now, I think it’s best that you leave. It's still the middle of the day and I'm sure you don't want all this vitamin D to turn you into a pile of ash.”

"Jesus. Rhodey, c'mon, let's just go." Tony said urgently. The other two were a hair's breadth away from exchanging punches and that wouldn't be good for any of them. 

“You’re one damn rude kid.” Hipster Dude shot back at Rhodey, eyes narrowing in distaste. 

“You just accused me of wanting to beat up my little brother, jerk. As I was saying, air's cleared now, so please leave? If you really don't want to, you can just fall over, preferably on a wooden stake.”

"Son of a--"

“Stop!” Tony hissed, pushing the two away from each other when it became clear they were about to come to blows. Fuck, he didn’t want to get him and Rhodey into trouble. He looked around and breathed a sigh of relief when he noticed that the most of the other students had left and those who were still around were too far away or engrossed in what they were doing to really notice them. “It’s just a stupid prank. I’m sorry, okay. I’m sorry.”

Hipster Dude let out another huff, “Fine. Whatever.” He muttered, pushing Tony’s hand—that Tony didn’t realize was still there—away from his chest.

Jarvis said it could happen in a flash.

He wasn’t kidding.

The instant that the man’s hand touched his, Tony felt warmth filling his whole being, the world tilted on its axis and everything just felt right in that very moment. Hipster Dude obviously felt it too, because his hand tightened around Tony’s.

“What the hell?” his eyes were drawn to that patch of skin on Tony’s forearm where all three of them saw Tony’s mark change colors. His mark was now a bright red star outlined with black and the lines of circuitry inside it turning gold.

It was beautiful.

“I…y-you’re…you’re my soulmate.” Tony whispered, looking at the man, somehow able to breathe from all the warm emotions flooding through his system.

The man’s right hand went up to touch his own shoulder, the left one—probably where his mark was—and he laughed a little, “Yeah…I guess, I am.”

“Tony. I’m Tony Stark. Nice to meet you.”

The hand around his squeezed a bit as the man said, “James Buchanan Barnes. You can call me Bucky.”

“You’re name’s James?”

“What about it?” Hipster Dude— _Bucky_ was looking at him as if he was the center of the universe. Cliché as it sounded, Tony had no better description for it. All he knew was that it made him feel giddy.

Tony felt heat fill his cheeks though grinned at the, now he realized, Brooklyn brogue his soulmate had. It was a nice sound, complementing his slightly raspy baritone really well.

“I’ve always felt like my soulmate would be a James.”

“Really? I—“

“Well, _I_ feel like you should move away from my brother and keep your disgusting mushy lines to yourself before I knock you out.” Rhodey interrupted obnoxiously, pulling Tony’s hand away from Bucky and pushing the younger boy behind him. “Keep your hands to yourself, _Yucky_.”

“Are you for real, punk?” Tony felt the disappointment Bucky felt from losing contact with him through their newly formed bond. Wow, so that was how it was if you’ve found your soulmate, he thought which made Bucky smile a bit because he felt Tony’s delighted wonder.

“It’s James Rhodes to you, Yucky.”

“Rhodey! He’s my soulmate.”

“Yes. Unfortunately—“

“Hey!” Bucky protested.

“—but we don’t know him and he’s a million years older than both of us.”

“A million—Rhodey, you’re being silly.”

“Kid, I’m twenty-five not a goddamn fossil.”

Rhodey rolled his eyes at Bucky, then jabbed a thumb towards Tony “And he’s _seventeen_.”

“What?” Bucky breathed in a whoosh. His eyes flew to Tony’s face, squinting as he took in every single detail. He sighed, dragged a hand over his face, covering his mouth, “You’re seventeen?”

“Y-yeah…I got in pretty early.” Tony muttered queasily. Oh God, he just found his soulmate and he was going to get rejected on the spot.

“Damn straight, you got in early.” Bucky replied, then mumbled disbelievingly, “ _Jesus Christ_ , seventeen.”

“I’m assuming you’re in Grad School? Or a new professor?” Rhodey asked, looking at Bucky from head to toe.

“Grad school. I’m working on my Master’s.” Bucky answered tersely.

“What department?”

“Sloan. SDM”

Rhodey nodded to himself. “Hmm… you’re twenty-five so that means you’re working. Where?”

“Stark Industries. R&D.”

Tony choked. “ _W-where_?”

“Stark Industri—oh.” Bucky’s face fell when he finally realized, looking at Tony “ _Oh_.”

“That’s right, Yucky. Oh.” Rhodey replied acerbically, “You’re working for his _daddy_.”

“Honeybear, stop beng a dick to Bucky.”

“What? I’m not being a dick, Tones. I’m just trying to get to know _Bugsy_.”

Tony covered his face with his palms, “Oh God.”

“Listen Rhodes,” Bucky sighed, crossing his arms over his chest, scowl appearing again on his face, “I dunno what you’re thinking but there’s no way around it. We’re soulmates. Now, if you’re thinking I’m gonna lay my hands on him just cause of that, then you’re dumb. Do I look like a pedophile to you?”

A vein popped on Rhodey’s forehead, “Do you really want an answer to that, _Mucky_?”

“Punk—“

“Bucky, don’t. Please.”

“He just implied I’m a pervert, doll.”

“I know, I heard. I’m sorry.”

“Ain’t your fault. Don’t be sorry, Tony.” Bucky smacked his teeth in annoyance but Tony knew it wasn’t aimed at him.

Rhodey looked at them for a few seconds before he spoke, “I have an idea.”

“Rhodey?”

“If that guy—“

“I’m right here, asshole.”

“—really wants to stay with you for the long haul then it’d be fine. Right, Tones?”

“I said I’m right here. Shouldn’t you be asking _me_?” Bucky barked at Rhodey who only grimaced at him, “To answer your damn question, yes, I want to stay with him. He’s my soulmate, I just found him. I ain’t leavin’ him just ‘cause you want me to. I’ll stay with him and you can’t do nothin’ about it.”

A grin split Rhodey’s lips that made Tony fear for Bucky. This wasn’t going to end well. “That true?”

“You can bet your life it’s true.”

“No matter what?”

“I can take whatever you’re gonna dish out my way, kid.”

“Hooo...really, tough guy? So you’re fine with Tony having a chaperone every time you see each other until he turns eighteen?”

Tony’s head whipped towards his best friend, “Rhodey?”

Bucky frowned, blinking at Rhodey, “What?”

“You heard me. You said you wanna stay with Tones and you can handle everything that I’ll dish out, right? You can’t date him unless you wanna spend a long time running your hands over prison bars. He’s a minor and you’re an old ass man—“

“I’m not old, dipshit.”

“—someone had to make sure you’ll keep your hands to yourself.”

Bucky’s face became shuttered and almost aloof, Tony almost wanted to whack Rhodey with a pan because he felt like Bucky was going to reject him now. Although, he was surprised when Bucky’s lips quirked in a half smirk.

“You wanna be a third-wheel? By all means. As long as I get to be with him, I’m just gonna pretend you’re not there.”

“Who says I’m third-wheeling? I’m bringing my own soulmate, Icky.”

“Don’t care. A year with bodyguards won’t be a problem as long as I’m with him. Besides…” Bucky’s eyes fell to Rhodey’s ROTC shirt, “You’re not gonna be around that much since you have trainings and hopefully you’ll be off to camp soon so you’ll get some manners.”

The grin fell from Rhodey’s face, “Don’t ever try to diss my Mama, asshole. I will punch your teeth in. And it isn’t just me who’s gonna watch out for you, _Binky_. Their driver Happy will join you guys if I’m not there. I’m sure Howard Stark would have something to say about your palm colored, predator ass too.”

“I didn’t say anything about your Mama. Unlike you, I do know better than to insult someone else’s mother. I’m just saying you’re clearly too dumb to learn anything from her and I’m not a fucking predator, you little punk. You can have a whole battalion following us around and I wouldn’t give a fuck.”

“How chivalrous of you.” Rhodey drawled sarcasm thick with every word, “Yeah, right. I’ll bet all of the money I have in my piggy bank that you’re gonna complain after a month.”

“You can start paying now and spare yourself the embarrassment.”

Tony slapped a hand over his forehead as his soulmate and best friend continued taking swipes at each other. He couldn’t even muster the energy to protest because he just had to resign himself to the fact that these two bickering all the time would be his life now.

* * *

_A year later…._

Tony smiled to himself as he looked at his soulmate across the table. They were at their favorite restaurant in Brooklyn for dinner. Looking at Bucky, Tony just couldn't help remembering how they met and how they had to keep the fact that they’re soulmates under wraps. How surprised he was that his father went nuclear and exploded like a Jericho missile when he found out that his teenage son’s soulmate was an older man. More so when he realized that said man happened to be one of his employees. Apparently, Bucky was also one of the best engineers on the Stark Industries’ payroll.

Tony had expected his dad to either not care at all or scream at him for not even finding the proper soulmate. Though he should have expected Howard to surprise him once in a while, because he didn’t get mad at him at all. He roared and shouted at _Bucky_ , screaming shit like what the fuck was he thinking hooking himself to a child (like Bucky had anything to do with choosing his own soulmate) or if Bucky ever so much as touch a strand of Tony’s hair, he could kiss his job and his days as a free man goodbye. It took his Mom almost half an hour to calm his dad down that Tony had to bite the inside of his cheeks so he wouldn’t laugh and make Howard angrier.

His dad pulled a Rhodey on Bucky and he felt his soulmate’s muted annoyance about that. Not that Tony could blame him, he didn’t have any idea that his soulmate would be a minor and he had to endure insults being hurled his way at every turn for it. Tony squeezed Bucky’s hand all throughout his dad’s tirade and sent some feelings of comfort to the taller brunet through their bond.

The elder Stark immediately called the lawyers to draw up NDA after NDA for Bucky to sign. Howard had also agreed with Rhodey’s plan when Tony brought it up. Sure, technically Bucky would be dating a minor, but then again it wasn’t like he chose to have a seventeen year old as a soulmate. And it was better than the alternative, which was rejecting or cutting off the bond. Something Maria wasn’t so keen on since she was afraid of how it will affect Tony whom already had anxiety issues.

Both of them were under strict supervision—no touching, kissing or anything of the sort. They couldn’t go anywhere without Tony’s chaperone which could be anyone from Rhodey, Happy or Jarvis. If Rhodey or Happy were unavailable during Tony’s school breaks, they could just spend the time at the Stark Manor under Jarvis’ watchful gaze and they were never to go to Bucky’s place. For goodness’ sake, Howard had even included prohibiting phone and video sex in one of the NDAs. Add more insult to injury, Howard snidely remarked that he was sure Bucky could _take care_ of himself. Bucky caught Tony’s eyes, minutely shaking his head at Howard’s antics.

Needless to say, that was possibly one of the most embarrassing things that happened in his life. His father smugly discussing that with him and Bucky in front of the lawyers and his mother.

They were really just two guys hanging out during that year to be honest, albeit followed around by a protective older brother and/or an equally protective nosy bodyguard. However, Tony knew their bond wasn’t platonic in nature. It wasn’t to say that platonic soulbonds were any less, it was just that he and Bucky were both aware that their attraction to each other went beyond the boundaries of friendship from the very beginning.

“Penny for your thoughts, doll?” Bucky asked with a smile after giving the waiter their orders. A year had passed and it was Tony’s birthday. He was eighteen now and they were celebrating it together. There was no chaperone in sight, hence the older man’s good mood. Tony knew Bucky really didn’t like the set up they had before because it was clear that no one on Tony’s side trusted him. Nevertheless, Bucky never complained and Tony loved him all the more for it.

“I was just thinking about how nice it is that we don’t have surveillance anymore.”

Bucky clucked his tongue, “Tell me about it. Doll, your security was tighter than in a goddamn maximum security prison. Complete with a warden who had it out for me. Christ, I couldn’t even touch your hand when _he’s_ around.”

Tony chuckled, “Rhodey’s not _that_ bad.”

“Doll, I get it. He’s your big brother and you love him but you gotta admit he’s a bit of a dickwad.”

The reply only made Tony laugh some more as it was the same thing Rhodey would say about Bucky: ‘Tony, I know he’s your soulmate but Barnes is an asshole.’

“Whatever you say, babe.” He chuckled, reaching for Bucky’s hand on the table. Bucky gladly let their hands intertwine.

“It’s nice. Finally getting to touch you like this. I don’t have to worry about your dad or the chaperones.”

“I know.”

“Doll.”

“Hmm?”

Bucky looked uncharacteristically bashful as he worked his jaw, “Can I kiss you?”

The question took Tony by surprise, prompting him to laugh louder than he would have inside a restaurant, more so when Bucky pursed his lips at his reaction. The other customers sent them reproachful looks until Tony quieted down.

“Of course, you can silly. Dammit, I’ve been waiting for that ever since we met, Barnes.”

Bucky’s eyes were full of warmth as he leaned a bit over the table to draw Tony into a kiss, still clutching his hand.

Tony had thought about kissing his soulmate multiple times, if Bucky’s lips were as soft as they looked or if they could go redder than they were if Tony worried his teeth over them. And at that moment, he would get his answers.

At least he would have, if not for the slightly thick white envelope in between their faces.

Bucky jerked back when his lips touched paper instead of Tony's, “What the hell?”

They both turned to the side and found Rhodey looking at Bucky with a shit-eating grin before chucking the envelop on the table.

“Why the fuck are you here?” Bucky groaned. 

“Surprise, motherfucker.”

Tony caught sight of Rhodey’s handwriting on the envelop and he almost fell from his chair as he laughed. He didn’t even care if his soulmate and his best friend as well as the other occupants of the restaurant were looking at him as if he were insane.

_To: Yucky Dumps_

_Enjoy the entrails of my piggy bank and take good care of my little brother, asshole._

_P. S. I'm still the better James._

* * *

Say yes, say yes, 'cause I need to know  
You say I'll never get your blessin' 'til the day I die  
"Tough luck, my friend, but the answer is no"

Why you gotta be so rude?  
Don't you know I'm human too?  
Why you gotta be so rude?  
I'm gonna marry her anyway

(Marry that girl) marry her anyway  
(Marry that girl) yeah, no matter what you say  
(Marry that girl) and we'll be a family  
Why you gotta be so rude?

**Author's Note:**

> I know it's not the most fitting song...but I really like it and the MV is so cute!
> 
> Thus the end of my sad attempt at a fluffy, cracky meet-cute. xD  
> I know, I'm mean to Bucky here. I'm sorry.


End file.
